Matthew - kidney transplant

AFTER spending almost his entire life waiting for a transplant, 11-year-old Matthew recently got the new kidney he so desperately needed.

Mum Nicola says:"Matthew has finally found his hero! It is so wonderful to be able to say that his day finally came after such a long wait. Matthew was antibody sensitive to 99% of the population – but we never gave up hope. It’s still very early days after the operation, but Matthew is doing really well so far.”

Matthew’s new kidney came from a living donor who came forward after hearing about the football mad youngster’s need.

“We cannot thank his donor and family enough for this incredible gift. It will change Matthew’s life and life for our whole family.

“Our campaign has never just been about us, there are thousands of people who need a transplant and are going through what we have. Organ donation is an amazing gift but not all patients will have a suitable living donor and most will get their transplants thanks to the generosity of people donating their organs after death. We hope that hearing of his good news will prompt more people to think of the gift they could give others and join the NHS Organ Donor Register," Nicola adds.

Matthew was five weeks old when he was diagnosed with a rare kidney condition. His family were told he would not survive childhood without a transplant.

Both Matthew’s kidneys were removed before he was five-years-old and while waiting for a donor Matthew depended on long daily dialysis sessions.

Living donation can offer an alternative to waiting on the national transplant waiting list for an organ from a deceased donor. Most living donors are relatives of recipients but it possible for friends and strangers to become living donors. Living donor volunteers undergo a series of tests to ensure they are suitable donors.

Kidneys are the most common organ donated by a living person. About a third of all kidney transplants carried out in the UK are from living donors. It is also possible to donate part of your liver as a living person, although this is less common than living kidney donation.